Romans 3:9-26

What, then, is the situation? Do we have any advantage? Not at all. We have already accused everyone (both Jews and Greeks) of being under the power of sin, as Scripture says, “Not one person has God’s approval. No one understands. No one searches for God. Everyone has turned away. Together they have become rotten to the core. No one does anything good, not even one person. Their throats are open graves. Their tongues practice deception. Their lips hide the venom of poisonous snakes. Their mouths are full of curses and bitter resentment. They run quickly to murder people. There is ruin and suffering wherever they go. They have not learned to live in peace. They are not terrified of God.” We know that whatever the Scriptures say applies to everyone under their influence, and no one can say a thing. The whole world is brought under the judgment of God. Not one person can have God’s approval by any effort to follow the laws in the Scriptures. These laws show what sin is. Now, the way to receive God’s approval has been made plain in a way other than the laws in the Scriptures. Moses’ Teachings and the Prophets tell us this. Everyone who believes has God’s approval through faith in Jesus Christ. There is no difference between people. Because all people have sinned, they have fallen short of God’s glory. They receive God’s approval freely by an act of his kindness  through the price Christ Jesus paid to set us free ⌞from sin⌟. God showed that Christ is the throne of mercy where God’s approval is given through faith in Christ’s blood. In his patience God waited to deal with sins committed in the past. He waited so that he could display his approval at the present time. This shows that he is a God of justice, a God who approves of people who believe in Jesus.